To Be Alive
by Scottie-Pet
Summary: Skulker's hopes to skin Danny Phantom once and for all go awry in a way that he'd never predicted - but he wasn't really objecting to it. After all, Danny was paying for his meal. NSFW


**To Be Alive**

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Green eyes aglow with something far too sinister to name stared intently into themselves, before slowly rolling down to examine the expanse of metal just below. An eerie grin split Skulker's face in two as he felt his mech chest rise and fall with pseudo breath. There wasn't a thing in the world that could horrify him more than himself, he knew. Something so dead. Something that lacked life. Skulker let a sigh flow from his teeth as he allowed his head to roll to the side, a careful smile now playing at his lips. He stepped back from the mirror, and, without bothering to look around his well decorated house, and blasted off into emptiness.

The ghost zone had spots of large population, and in contrast, had it's areas that lacked ghostly dwellers entirely. Skulker's home was closer to the latter, and he was quite pleased with the quiet that usually accompanied such.

Skulker enjoyed the slow process of hunting, the introspective discoveries that came with being so focused on one thing for such a lengthy period of time. He'd take all his time and he'd bask in how he could grasp so much more comprehension on the simplest and most intricate of things. But when the hunt went on for too long, it fermented into something worse. Something of an obsession that was unhealthy, and he became less of a free assassin and more of a desperate and perturbed creep. It didn't happen often, but when it did, it took Skulker far too long to realize what had happened. And only recently had it occurred to him that the process had already begun.

With none other than Danny Phantom.

Taking a peek at what he'd become - a monster, so to speak - was a horrific experience for Skulker. He felt as though he were no longer truly alive (being a ghost, of course, this conclusion was correct). Etched into his walls were scratch marks he'd created out of spite and humiliation from having yet to catch the ghost child. His suit was no longer in the impeccable condition he'd once prided it to be, now dirty from him skipping periodic washes. He'd scared away any semblance of romance he'd had a chance at with Ember, having freaked out the young girl with his sickly obsession. And to top it off, even Vlad Masters, the man who was immersed in his own desires and was infamous for his strange longing, had called out Skulker on how Danny Phantom consumed him. Him! Vlad Masters! It was degrading, to say the least.

Which was, of course, why he sought to end his obsession once and for all.

Or at least, he had, until he was quite shockingly interrupted by the object of his hunt. His prey had sent him some bizarre transmission earlier that day, via one of Technus' devices, informing Skulker that he wanted to meet him at a specific time and place. To imply that Skulker was taken back by this action would be a criminal understatement. Yet, he complied, incredibly wary of what the ghost child had in mind.

As the destination Danny had decided on approached Skulker's view, he grew confused. Certainly he'd entered in the coordinates for where they were meant to meet, but he hadn't actually checked where it was specifically. As the area came into view, Skulker came to a pale realization that it was a rather pricey restaurant. His metallic brows grew taut. What did the whelp have in mind?

"Oh good, you actually came." The voice of a saint clouded his senses and he turned to see a notably jittery Danny Phantom, adorned in a bowtie.

Skulker frowned.

"I uh- not that I didn't think you would, of course." Danny laughed a bit too loudly and then cleared his throat. "Oops... I should've - I mean, uh, hi, Skulker. Hello." He laughed again, this time with far more demure.

"You've got a lot of nerve, whelp," Skulker spat his words, eyes glowing dangerously. "Seeking to meet with a ghost that could skin you in mere seconds."

It was then that a genuine smile seemed to erupt over Danny's face, almost as though Skulker's harshness calmed him. "Right, right. But I was thinking we could save that for another day... For now, I want a truce." Danny erected his arm and waited for Skulker to shake his hand.

The ghost hunter stared in agonizing contemplation for a moment or so, before floating forward in hopes of making himself appear intimidating. "What makes you think I'd agree to this, ghost child?"

Danny's smile didn't waver. "If you wanted to capture me, you would've tried to by now." His eyelids lowered and, rather than waiting any longer, he grasped Skulker's hand in his.

Skulker blinked, finding himself especially concerned when Danny didn't immediately release his hand. Instead, Danny began to float forwards, bringing Skulker along with him.

"What is the meaning of this?" He gruffed as Danny guided him into the entrance of the large restaurant.

He received no answer, and instead, Danny turned to a rather prestigious looking ghost at the front desk. "Reservation under Phantom." Only then did Danny release his hand.

Almost instantly, a server appeared, smiling at them. "Right this way, gentlemen."

Skulker felt discomfort instantly overwhelm him. When was the last time someone had referred to him as a 'gentleman'? Come to think of it, had anyone ever referred to him as a 'gentleman'? In addition, he was rather peeved that they were inside of the restaurant. He couldn't so carelessly blow the walls to bits as he'd done in the human world. Walker would be on him immediately, and the last thing he wanted was to be sent back to prison.

"So," Danny drawled, dragging Skulker from his thoughts. "I uh. This isn't so bad, right?" Coyness wormed it's way into his tone as he drew invisible circles on the white table cloth.

Skulker adjusted himself in his seat, steeling his glare. "You better get to the point right now, whelp, before I blow you to pieces." A bluff, but Danny didn't need to know that.

Danny's face twisted into something teetering on provocative. "Haven't I already?" He straightened his posture and coughed into his wrist. "Listen, I'm uh, really not good with this sort of thing. If I were, you know, well, I'd have a much easier time with Paulina."

Skulker blanched as he began to understand.

Danny licked his lips and continued. "But that's beside the point, because right now, I'm not thinking of Paulina." He paused, finally making eye contact with Skulker, something maddeningly coveting burning in his irises. "...I'm thinking of you."

Skulker immediately stood, shaking the table with his abruptness and sending his chair clattering backwards. Several parties at other tables glanced over at him, disapproval written all over their faces. He seethed in embarrassment, more so at Danny's words than anything else, feeling his metal warm at the insinuations the young boy had created. His mohawk grew in intensity and Skulker growled.

"Ghost child," he hissed, "what sort of trickery is this?"

Danny was just as embarrassed, his cheeks quite red as he shot looks around and sunk into his seat. "This isn't a trick-" he whispered loudly. "Sit back down, Skulker, you're making a scene."

"I'm making a scene?" His voice rose. "You're the one who... Who asked your enemy out on a date!" His flaming hair grew as he stumbled over his words, and his fists clenched.

Danny stood, shooshing him. He planted his hands over Skulker's shoulders and forced him back down with surprising strength, eliciting a gasp out of Skulker as he was jerked into his seat.

"Is there a problem, sir?" A waiter floated to him, tone condescending.

"No, no problem." Danny's voice was the definition of nervousness. He then glared at Skulker. "No problem at all."

"Very well. Are you ready to order, then?" The server inquired, whisking parchment into existence, a pen centimeters from the paper as he waited.

"Um, no," Danny responded carefully. "Just give us a few minutes, okay?"

With that, the employee departed, leaving Skulker and Danny alone once more. Phantom grimaced in Skulker's general direction. "Listen, I know it's kind of surprising, but you don't have to make us look like total jerks."

Skulker gaped at him for a moment. "You can't be serious… About any of this. I have a girlfriend, you fool." He didn't. But how could the halfa know that?

Apparently, he was aware of Skulker's singular status, sending him a skeptical expression. "Ember told me that you two were through. She's even encouraged me to go for you."

Skulker stared. "What." He ground out.

Danny smiled thinly. "Dora, Technus, Pandora, and Poindexter did too, while I'm throwing ghosts under the bus." He then examined his nails. "Johnny and Kitty didn't say I should, but they both thought it'd make sense what with... What word did they use?" Danny looked up at Skulker with a smug grin. "Oh yeah, your obsession with me."

Skulker was boiling. He was clenching his fists so hard he had to tell himself to relax, lest he break his own suit on accident. "You-" he swallowed thickly, his mohawk steadily rising, catching Danny's amused eyes, "You told them that you're infatuated with me, whelp?"

Danny laughed, leaning on his hand as he stared at Skulker almost dreamily. "Nope. They told me you had a thing for me."

"Why in the name of all things-" Skulker began, voice growing agitated, before he was interrupted by a soft cough from the waiter nearby.

"Oh yeah," Danny smiled. "I'll have some uh, scream soup, and he'll be having the huntsmen's platter." He smiled wryly at Skulker, flashing him a wink, before the waiter disappeared.

Skulker was speechless at this point, so angry he couldn't form words. He looked down to realize that he'd been clutching the table so hard, it was bordering on snapping. Danny noticed too, reaching across the table to put his hand over Skulkers, to which Skulker pulled back roughly.

"Ghost child," he managed. "This is absurd. You've been mislead, this is clearly a trap from those other ghosts." Beginning to get ahold of himself once more, Skulker folded his hands together so as not to break the table in his pent up rage.

Danny laughed. "Who cares? You haven't tried to skin me yet- or whatever you wanted to do. Which means this date isn't totally in the trash."

Skulker didn't want to admit that Danny had a point. He also wasn't quite ready to admit that he sort of liked the attention Danny was giving him. Nor was he ready to admit that his fellow ghosts had been right, in a sense. Instead, he huffed. "You are delusional, ghost child." He paused, before quirking an eyebrow, a smile panning over his face. "...You are also paying."

Danny grinned, face lighting up. "Fine by me."

Their food was placed on the table, creating a momentary pause as they began to eat. Skulker was rather embarrassed at how good it was, and how Danny had known he would have enjoyed it. Then again, how could he have not, what with the name?

"So, whelp," Skulker accentuated the name so as to make a point. "What compelled you to invite me here today?"

Danny rose a brow. "What, like, you mean why now of all times did I want to go on a date with you?"

Skulker said nothing, so Danny took that as a cue to continue.

"Well, Ember said that it'd be around this time that you'd try to seriously waste me, so I better move fast." His smile suddenly faded. "No way..."

Skulker grinned in turn. "Now do you see that she only intended for you to be destroyed?"

Danny grunted, blowing a wisp of ivory hair from his visage. "Yeah, well. Doesn't matter, I guess, 'cause I'm not mounted on your wall yet." He then grinned suggestively. "Besides, I'm not going back to your house on the first date."

Skulker paused in his eating to stare at the ghost child in mild shock, slowly registering what Danny was saying, before he groaned awkwardly and averted his eyes. "I still struggle to believe that you are serious."

"Then I guess you don't know your 'prey' as well as you thought." Danny snarked, grinning slyly.

Skulker's knee thumped on the bottom of the table rather loudly as he felt what was definitely Danny's leg rub against his metallic calf. His fingers shook whilst holding his silverware and he momentarily fumbled with it.

"You realize," he seethed, "that I'm much older than you, correct?"

"Uh, duh." Danny rolled his eyes, smile still intact as his leg rose to the inside of Skulker's knee, gently rubbing it. "We're both ghosts, I don't see why it matters."

"You're half ghost," Skulker corrected. "And you also realize that I'm merely in a shell, correct? I can certainly... Feel, but that doesn't mean..." He trailed off, reaching under the table to roughly grab Danny's foot and push it back down to the ground.

A flicker of disappointment passed through Danny's face that Skulker just barely caught. "Yeah, yeah. I get it, don't hound me. I know, and besides, I already spoke to Vlad about it."

Skulker blinked. "My employer? What for?"

Danny reached across the table indiscreetly and rubbed his thumb over Skulker's wrist, his face the image of snide. "I asked him if you were... Well, complete."

It took Skulker a moment to grasp what Danny was getting at, and when he did, his mohawk flashed dangerously. "How would he know-?!"

Danny's smile grew sardonic. "He has helped build you back up a few times, if I've heard right."

Skulker was at loss for words, not knowing how to continue the conversation from then on without humiliating himself further. Fortunately, Danny took the reigns.

"Listen, I get it if this makes you a little… Well, weirded out." The ghost boy grew quiet, doubt lingering in his words. "I know you and I aren't totally on the best terms, I get it, I think about it a lot." A shudder wracked his frame before he continued, now idly playing with his spoon. "But you haven't tried to waste me yet and I kind of think you're cooler than any human or any other ghosts I've met yet. You're a little freaky, yeah, but I like you a lot."

Now finished with his speech, Danny looked up almost bashfully, hope glimmering in his green eyes as Skulker gawked. Never before had anyone addressed him in such a manner. Not with such sincere passion. In his human life he'd mostly kept to himself and he'd really only pursued romance with Ember out of boredom, having been trapped in the Fenton thermos with her countless times. This was so much more than that. It was his obsession being returned with impeccable fire, it was his uncanny need being reflected back at him, and his resolve snapped.

"Check…" He mumbled at first, before speaking up. "Check, please!"

Danny blinked up at him in surprise, mouth hanging open. "Skulker-"

"No." Skulker sent him a stern look. Plaintive breakage began to wash over Danny's face, before Skulker realized he wasn't communicating well. "This- this is not me rejecting you, whelp. This is us leaving this infernal restaurant."

Danny perked up at the word 'us' and nodded sharply.

Upon departing (and getting a copious amount of nasty looks on their way out), this time Skulker had no chagrin with Danny holding his hand, fumbling awkwardly with it as he did. He flew back to his island, keeping a tight grip on Danny all the while, who seemed to be in a breezy state of enamore, until they reached the muddy green foliage of Skulker's home.

"Don't forget," Danny chirped, his tone playful. "I said I wouldn't be going inside on the first date."

Skulker's mohawk ignited and he rose a brow. "Don't get ahead of yourself. We're not going to go inside."

Danny gave scrutinized him in curiosity, before Skulker drifted them to a particular spot on the island. It was a canopy of trees with thick branches that overlooked a magnificent waterfall, flowing with ease into a surprisingly calm lake. They seated themselves on a particularly fat branch just above the drop.

"Wow." Was all Danny had to say.

"Like it?" Skulker grinned. "It wasn't easy to come by. Not without some competition for this land."

Danny smirked at him, something close to pride dancing in his smile. Pride on Skulker's behalf. "It's totally awesome. I gotta say, I'm impressed."

Skulker wasn't sure if that was hinting at a backhanded compliment, but he left it at that. He was about to say something more when he felt an unexpected weight on his shoulder, and he realized that Danny Phantom was leaning on him. Danny's gloved fingers frisked across Skulker's metallic ones, darting over the joints with sensual gentility. Skulker felt, once more, at loss.

"You know," Danny's quiet voice broke the silence. "You really could call me something other than 'whelp' or 'ghost child'. Like, I don't know, my name?" He snickered.

Skulker bellowed a laugh. "What. You want me to call you Danny? Dan? Daniel?"

Danny grimaced. "Anything but Daniel... The first two work."

"I don't know if I can take the name 'Danny' seriously." Skulker admit, feeling weird just saying it. In the past few years they'd known each other, he hadn't really used that name, especially not to address Danny himself.

"Dan it is, then. But you're the only one who'll be calling me that." Danny agreed, and Skulker felt a spark shoot within his torso at his words, as Danny nestled his head further into the crook of Skulker's shoulder, who was wondering how on earth that could be comfortable for the young man by any stretch of logic. Still, he didn't object.

Moments of silence passed that the hunter spent wondering how what he was experiencing was even possible. How had Skulker gone from intending to hunt and destroy Danny Phantom to spending time with him in a romantic manner? He glanced down at the young ghost, whose eyes were half mast, a goofy smile playing at his lips. Skulker huffed, his mohawk smothering the branch above with flame that luckily wasn't really flammable. Were it that he was capable of visibly blushing, his face would've been dusted with a bright hue.

"Do you have a curfew… Dan?" The name tasted strange upon his lips, yet it felt as though it was meant for him to say.

"Yes and no," Danny peeked up at him. "I don't really have a set time to get back, but I can't like… Stay forever." His expression bordered on wistful as he said that, and his fingers flickered over Skulker's.

"I am still not sure how I feel about this sudden… Advancement." Skulker revealed with caution.

"That's okay," Danny quickly reassured him, sitting up yet pressing closer. "I mean, I didn't expect you to be, right away. Poindexter said that you probably weren't even like, aware of how you felt yet."

"How would he know?" Skulker grumbled, green eyes squinting in the general direction of the waterfall.

Danny sent him a playfully taunting glare. "You were the one who set him free from that weird dimension, so I guess he thinks of you as a friend or something."

"That was unintentional." Skulker clarified, subconsciously leaning closer to the young phantom. "Besides, I rarely speak to the whelp."

"Good to know that you didn't reserve that nickname for me," Danny remarked with a hum.

Skulker turned to him. "...And how, exactly, did you decide that you were… Infatuated with me?"

"Well…" Danny licked his lips thoughtfully. "I guess it just all sorta built up. At first it was like these weird little things, where I'd notice that you looked totally cool in an upgraded suit. And then it got to me, uh…" Danny blinked bashfully. "...Wanting to do this."

Without further ado, Danny pushed himself upwards to meet his face with Skulker's. There was a split second of Danny's half lidded eyes drawn to his lips, his own shuddering out a breath, before he placed them together, metal against organic. His lips were dry but sweet, firm against Skulker's surprised ones, and they pressed against his with a retained passion. When Danny pulled away, both of them were dazed, to say the least. Skulker's hair had swelled at least five fold, blazing against the foliage above.

"Oh." Skulker murmured intelligently.

"Yeah." Danny respired in a low tone.

"I want to do that again." Skulker grinned, his hands twitching to Danny's shoulders.

"If you insist," Danny's tongue swept out against his lips as he eyed Skulker's, face enlivened.

This time Skulker hunched down to urge his lips against the soft pair before him, and he inhaled deliberately. They both grew heated and overwhelmed, pulling back centimeters only to push back together, lips moving in sync. They kissed twice, three times, four times, and lost count. Skulker hadn't felt so alive since… Since he'd last been. His demise had stolen all that away from him, yet Danny was making him start to relive passion. And he liked it. A lot.

"Dan…" He groaned softly, inching a bit closer, feeling giddy and so very refreshed.

Danny's lips curved upwards and he sent him a wink, before leaning in for another kiss. "Glad you-" Kiss. "-like me-" Kiss. "-as much as-" Kiss. "-I like you."

If anything sealed the deal, that was it. Skulker said nothing, but his actions provided his response as he kissed over the corner of Danny's mouth and his jaw. He kissed against the hollow of Danny's neck, eliciting something resembling of a purr, and began to haze over that vicinity with his mouth. He could feel his suit growing warm with concentrated lust that was all surfacing so suddenly.

"Ghost chi- Dan… If you do not leave now, I will not be able to stop myself." He growled into Danny's skin.

"Good-" Danny chuckled. "Then that means I've done a good job."

Skulker looked up at him, before he leaned forward, his weight pushing Danny back against the trunk. "Do you consent, then?"

Danny sent him an ardent expression, his face the picture of yearning, before he wrapped his arms around Skulker and pulled him closer. "Skulker…" He keened into the ghost hunter's ear. "I wouldn't still be here if I didn't."

Skulker moaned almost embarrassingly loud, simply from Danny's words, and began to graze his heated crotch against his partner's with increasing intensity and pressure. The sounds Danny made were almost animalistic - loud and desperate, and they pushed Skulker closer to the point of no return. His hardness pushed forcefully against Danny's, as Skulker rocked him against the side of the tree, releasing his own grunts of savory need. His hands yanked against Danny's hair, tearing a pleasured yelp from his throat, as Danny wrapped his legs around Skulker's waist to bring them closer.

"Oh God, Skulker-" Danny ground out, panting as his eyes rolled back.

"You like that, pet?" Skulker gruffed, a sinister smirk on his face. He reached around to grasp Danny's derriere, squeezing harshly.

Danny cried out and almost instantly orgasmed in his suit, the sticky fluids wetting the front of his pants. Skulker gasped at the suddenness of it all, finding himself fiercely aroused by the fact that he had the power to bring Danny Phantom to orgasm so quickly, and he too climaxed within his trousers.

"Shit-" he hissed as his humping slowed to a stop, both of them panting feverishly.

After a minute or so of silence, Danny piped up. "Wow, if that's what the first date was like, I can't wait for the second."

Skulker laughed. "In that case, whelp, I look forward to it."

They shared a kiss and Skulker once more knew what it was like to be alive.

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**I'll eventually look over this and see all of it's errors in utter horror, but right now I'm far too tired of looking at it to primp it any further. Hurrah for callous quarry, the darned ship I fell in love with for this series... With a shocking lack of fics.**


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